Reviews : Arsenal

Guncrafter Industries Glock 21 .50 Caliber Conversion

With a match grade barrel and a stainless steel slide, this conversion transforms a standard Glock 21 into a fire-spitting monster.

November 19, 2009
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by Abner Miranda

The Ammunition

The interesting aspect of the GI .50 round is that it's really s-l-o-w. The 275-grain JHP flies through the air at about 875 feet per second. Yeah, that's slow. The 300-grain JFP is even slower; it lumbers out at 700 fps. I've taken to calling it Eeyore after the donkey in the Winnie the Pooh stories.

Of course speed isn't everything. Eeyore, while being a slow little donkey of a round, hits like you would not believe. It actually pounded my steel target with so much force that it knocked the entire 100-pound plate and stand combo hard enough to make it furrow the ground.

I would suspect that even if a bad guy were wearing body armor this round would probably split his sternum and disrupt his heart's rhythm enough to possibly cause unconsciousness. Folks, these .50 cals really do hit that hard. They caused dings in steel targets that normally fracture .40 and .45 cal rounds into so much dust.

Range Time

My testing tends to be as real world as I can make it. I don't really mess around with bench rests, mostly because I really don't give a hoot about taking measurements and the like. I prefer to shoot the weapon as if I were defending myself, fast and furious.

I stepped up to about the seven yard line, and I drew the weapon, got a rough sight picture, and started squeezing off rounds as fast as I could get the gun back on target.

I won't lie to you; it has a bit of a bite to it when it goes off. The harmonic resonance that passes through the gun is enough to give your trigger finger a little sting. It's nothing most shooters can't handle, though.

And the end result on the target is something to behold. The GI .50 can really put a lot of punch on a target.

Where I think the GI .50 Glock conversion would really prove useful in law enforcement is as a secondary weapon for a SWAT officer. As a SWAT operator the only reasons that you may have to go to your secondary weapon are failure of your carbine or close-in fighting where a long gun isn't very practical. Either way, stopping power is what you're looking for when this happens. And the GI .50 round offers that in spades.

Final Thoughts

The Guncrafter Industries Glock 21 Conversion Unit is a well-designed system that could prove popular with shooting enthusiasts and law enforcement officers. And for the hunter, this is a weapon that needs to be explored. I do believe that the GI .50 bullet might even be able to put a tough skinned wild boar down in one hit. It really is a versatile round and I'd love to see its power displayed in a subgun of some sort, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

All in all I found the kit a pleasure to work with and I'm very sad to send it back. On second thought...maybe I'll buy it.

Abner Miranda is a patrolman for the Signal Mountain (Tenn.) Police Department. He is a Spanish interpreter, an FBI trained hostage negotiator, and an AR-15 armorer.

Comments (8)

Really impressive! Since my grown son made off with my Kimber, I'm looking for another .45. Or .50?? Cost of the conversion kit? Really interested!

Ryan @ 2/28/2012 10:18 AM

everylink i clicked took me to LWRC and theres no mention of this conversition... i read about it in a mag and after seeing ur post really would like to look further into this

Mr. P @ 3/16/2012 7:29 AM

I have had my Glock 27 and the conversion GI .50 cal. for a few years now and have not had the first problem. (knock on wood).

The impressive precision of this weapon with the .50 cal is outstanding not to mention even when it's in .45 cal mode. There is not much difference in recoil but there is nothing like this model that has no match in all the .50 cal hand-cannons that I have ever fired.

jay Wright @ 7/17/2012 2:43 AM

Yuuuuuuuuuuuuuup! That's a Monster!!! I own a Glock 21 and that's so so clean I won't one for my Glock! Nice jay

JC Nieves @ 10/28/2012 3:22 PM

I read a Magazine article about GL conversion to 50 cal. I believe the kit cost about $ 450

I understand the 50 GI "Conversion" kit can be had to fit my Glock 20. I would like to experience this with a 6.02" barrel so that the 275 grain load can generate more energy for hunting and stopping automobiles ;)

(Just a thought).

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